Chapter 95: Return

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Minato, looking defeated, tried to explain.

"It's true... as a teacher, I failed to protect my students—twice. Even as Hokage, I couldn't protect the villagers."

Minato's voice was heavy with regret. During the battle at Kannabi Bridge, he hadn't known that Obito's team was in danger.

By the time he learned that Obito had been buried under the rubble, it was too late. Minato had led the villagers in searching for Obito for three long months, but they never found his body.

Later, when the Three-Tails went berserk, Rin had died, another failure that weighed heavily on Minato's heart.

As their teacher, he hadn't even known that Rin had been made the Three-Tails' Jinchūriki.

Minato lowered his head. He couldn't find the words to justify his failures. All he could say was, "Obito, I'm sorry... I wasn't a good teacher."

Obito remained silent.

Minato looked at the scars on Obito's face, partially hidden by his mask, and felt his heart break.

Obito had once been his favorite student, full of hope and potential. Seeing the marks of suffering etched into his skin, Minato could only imagine the hardships Obito had endured.

Although Kakashi was often called a genius, Minato and Kushina had always had a soft spot for Obito.

But now, they found themselves on opposite sides of a conflict, a situation Minato could never have foreseen.

Obito finally spoke, his voice heavy with emotion. "Sensei, I know I've done a lot of terrible things, but I'm trying to make up for them. I want to leave the past behind and focus on living. I made mistakes, and I'll do everything I can to atone for them."

Minato felt a small sense of relief as he realized that the wall between them was slowly crumbling. The bond between teacher and student was beginning to heal.

Just as Nagato was preparing to fully resurrect Minato, Sasuke interrupted. "Yondaime, does the Yin half of Kurama still reside within you?"

Minato nodded. "Yes, that's correct."

Sasuke looked at him intently. "After you're resurrected, you won't need Kurama anymore. Hand the Nine-Tails over to me."

Minato hesitated, then asked, "Who are you?"

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke," Sasuke replied. "My father was Uchiha Fugaku, and I'm a friend of Naruto."

Minato considered this for a moment. "But the Yin half of Kurama has a fierce temperament. I'm not sure if you can control him."

Sasuke brushed his hair aside, revealing his left eye—the Rinnegan. "Yondaime, believe me, Kurama is nothing I can't handle."

Seeing the confidence in Sasuke's eyes, Minato nodded in agreement.

He sat cross-legged on the ground and placed his palms together, facing Sasuke.

Sasuke's body then unleashed a powerful suction force, akin to a wind vortex, instantly drawing the Yin half of Kurama into himself.

This event would later be remembered as "Dark Waters Return."

...

After Kurama was extracted, Nagato used the Rinne Rebirth Technique to fully resurrect Minato.

As the jutsu took effect, the scars on Minato's face crumbled away like dust, and his body regained its warmth. He was truly alive again.

Minato looked down at his hands in disbelief, murmuring to himself, "Am I really... resurrected?"

Meanwhile, inside Sasuke's mind, a vast, endless world existed.

The Yin half of Kurama was raging, furiously berating Matatabi, the Two-Tails, for surrendering her dignity as a tailed beast and submitting to a human.

Matatabi trembled in fear.

Suddenly, the sky darkened, and Kurama felt a pressure that resonated with his very bloodline.

A figure appeared, floating in mid-air. This figure wore a white, feathered cloak and had a curved horn on his head.

His right eye was white, and his left eye was black. His mere presence radiated an overwhelming and terrifying power.

It was Isshiki Ōtsutsuki.

As Isshiki prepared to absorb Kurama, he suddenly felt his consciousness fading away.

Within two seconds, Isshiki's consciousness was completely erased, leaving only his raw power behind.

In the outside world, a series of electronic notifications appeared in Sasuke's mind.

[Ding! A non-hostile soul was detected within the host's body and has been erased...]

[Ding! Erasure successful!]

...

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